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Tech News Blog
4.27.05
Critical Flaw Discovered in Netscape
CNET, PC World, and Secunia are reporting on a serious flaw that exists in Netscape’s browser and the latter has graded the bug ‘highly critical’. Secunia recommends Netscape users, “use another product”. I guess that is about as serious as threats can become. Check out Firefox or Mozilla as an alternative available from Mozilla.org/.

New Product Ends I Spy Endeavors
Those computer users worried about electronic data theft via wireless or infrared signals could soon have a new tool in the battle against crackers. According to CNET, the product can be applied as a film to windows to keep snoopers from dropping eaves on your business. The metals contained within the product ‘SpyGuard’ can also be included in paint to provide further protection against war drivers and crackers.

Yahoo Joins the Personal Search Race
Yahoo has also introduced a new personal search service that they have named My Web. Following the lead of Google, Yahoo new service allows you to save web pages and more according to PC World.

All OS X 10.3.9 Annoyances in One Spot
MacFixIt has a compilation of all the recently reported bugs associated with the update from Apple, OS X 10.3.9/. If you are still having issues with the update, visit MacFixIt for a variety of solutions and suggestions.

Open Source Updates
Secunia announced the following open source systems have update or security bulletins available: Debian (1, 2), Red Hat (1, 2), and Gentoo (1, 2, 3)

Multiple Platforms.com Tip of the Day: Helpful Web Sites Continued
Today the tip from Multiple Platforms will assist you in converting currency; Yahoo has an updated and easy to use web page to help convert most currencies.

Multiple Platforms Word of the Day: Disk Cache
According to Wikipedia a disk cache is, “Hard disks have historically often been packaged with embedded computers used for control and interface protocols. Since the late 1980s, nearly all disks sold have these embedded computers and either an ATA, SCSI, or Fibre Channel interface. The embedded computer usually has some small amount of memory which it uses to store the bits going to and coming from the disk platter.
The disk buffer is physically distinct from and is used differently than the page cache typically kept by the operating system in the computer's main memory. The disk buffer is controlled by the embedded computer in the disk drive, and the page cache is controlled by the computer to which that disk is attached. The disk buffer is usually quite small, 2 to 8 MB, and the page cache is generally all unused physical memory, which in a 2004 PC may be between 20 and 2000 MB. And while data in the page cache is reused multiple times, the data in the disk buffer is typically never reused. In this sense, the phrases disk cache and cache buffer are misnomers, and the embedded computer's memory is more appropriately called the disk buffer.”